Bush Theatre's RED PITCH Transfers to @sohoplace in 2024

The Bush Theatre's multi-Award winning play Red Pitch written by Tyrell Williams transfers to @sohoplace theatre, the West End's newest venue.

Bush Theatre's Associate Artistic Director, Daniel Bailey directs Kedar Williams-Stirling, Emeka Sesay and Francis Lovehall reprising their roles.

Opening @sohoplace for a strictly limited run: Friday 15 March -  Saturday 4 May 2024 (Press Night: Thursday 21 March, 7pm)

Originally performed at the Bush Theatre in February 2022, the production received the George Devine Award,  Best New Play at the OffWestEnd Awards, with Tyrell Williams named Best Writer at the Stage Debut Awards, and awarded the Evening Standard Theatre Award for Most Promising Playwright and Most Promising Playwright at the Critics' Circle Theatre Awards. This marks the Bush Theatre's first West End transfer under Lynette Linton's tenure as Artistic Director.

Red Pitch follows @sohoplace's first year of programming which included Marvellous, As You Like It, Medea, Brokeback Mountain, and currently The Little Big Things which runs until 2 March 2024.

Red Pitch is produced by Chuchu Nwagu, Adam Kenwright and Nica Burns.

Chuchu Nwagu, Adam Kenwright and Nica Burns today announce the West End transfer of the Bush Theatre's hit play Red Pitch to @sohoplace theatre, with the original cast - Kedar Williams-Stirling, Emeka Sesay and Francis Lovehall - reprising their roles. The production plays for a strictly limited run at @sohoplace, opening on Thursday 21 March, with previews from Friday 15 March, and running @sohoplace until Saturday 4 May 2024.

Kedar Williams-Stirling (Sex Education), Emeka Sesay (The Power) and Francis Lovehall (Small Axe) are directed by Daniel Bailey in the award-winning play about brotherhood, ambition, girls, community, and what it really means to belong. 

What happens when your football pitch, a place you've laughed, fought, and forged friendships - the very existence of your closeknit community - is threatened by impending demolition? Can lifelong friends continue to dream of stardom, or will their goals be torn down alongside their home?

Artistic Director of Bush Theatre, Lynette Linton said, “Developing new writing and is central to what we do at the Bush Theatre and Tyrell's 'Red Pitch' is an example of which we are very proud.  A beautiful story of three young Black men, dealing with what life throws at them via their deeply rooted friendship based on playing football.  It was a massive success at the Bush both with audiences and critics, and following two sold-out runs at our home in West London, I and the Bush team are so excited to introduce the show to a wider West End audience and firmly establish 'Red Pitch' in the theatrical canon. Come we go!”

Tyrell Williams and Daniel Bailey noted today, “The Red Pitch team are so excited to be bringing our hit show to the West End. @sohoplace is the perfect space for us to share our production with a wider audience and the audiences who have followed our journey from the start.”

Nica Burns, head of @sohoplace said, “Tyrell Williams deservedly won all five Best Writing Debut Awards for his amazing play ‘Red Pitch', brilliantly directed by Daniel Bailey and performed by an outstanding cast. Sold out twice at the Bush, we are delighted to be welcoming this must see production, so perfect for our intimate auditorium.”

Chuchu Nwagu, Co-Producer of the production said, “I am thrilled to be partnering with Adam and Nica in bringing this beautiful and brilliant play to a wider audience @sohoplace. After two totally sold out seasons this will be the final ever time to see this production in London.”

CAST

Kedar Williams-Stirling stars in the Netflix series Sex Education. His television credits include Steve McQueen's anthology series Small Axe for the BBC and Amazon, Will for TNT, the History Channel mini-series Roots and Wolfblood.  Kedar's stage credits include playing Young Simba in The Lion King (Lyceum), Big White Fog (Almeida Theatre), Welcome to Thebes (National Theatre), The Dutchman and The History Boys.

 

Francis Lovehall co-stars in the television series A Thousand Blows for Disney+ which is currently in production. He made his screen debut in Steve McQueen's highly acclaimed Small Axe: Lovers Rock. Other credits include His Dark Materials, upcoming Apple TV series Criminal Record and Netflix series Champion. Francis made his professional debut on stage in Nick Hytner's A Midsummer Night's Dream at The Bridge Theatre before graduating RADA in 2019. For his role in the original production of Red Pitch, Francis was nominated for an Evening Standard Theatre Award in the Emerging Artist category.

 

Emeka Sesay recently shot Jeymes Samuel's The Book of Clarence, prior to that he appeared in the BBC independent feature Pretty Red Dress directed by Dionne Edwards.  His previous credits include The Power for Amazon, The Novels That Shaped Us for BBC 2 with Russell Tovey, Top Boy for Netflix and Armando Iannucci's David Copperfield alongside Dev Patel, Hugh Laurie, and Tilda Swinton. In 2016 Emeka appeared in Shadowman as well as BAFTA nominated short films Samuel613 and Goodnight.

CREATIVES

Tyrell Williams is an award-winning writer and director for theatre, film, and television. Red Pitch is currently in development for a screen adaptation with Fudge Park. In addition to another original series he also has in development with Fudge Park, he has written an episode of an upcoming Apple TV+ series. 

 

Tyrell has been named one of Deadline's 5 rising writers to watch in 2023 and is currently on attachment to The National Theatre Studio. In 2015, Tyrell co-created, co-wrote and directed the viral web series #HoodDocumentary which has had over 4 million views on YouTube. Following its online acclaim, #HoodDocumentary eventually went on to be commissioned for BBC Three which Tyrell directed and co-wrote. Tyrell was on the BAFTA Elevate scheme 2018 and was a Broadcast Hotshot in 2016.

 

Director Daniel Bailey is a director, dramaturg and writer for stage and screen. He is Associate Artistic Director at the Bush Theatre, London, having joined the team in 2019 alongside Artistic Director Lynette Linton. Prior roles include Associate Director at Birmingham Rep Theatre (after initially joining as part of the Regional Theatre Young Director Scheme), Resident Director at The National Theatre Studio, Associate Artist at Theatre Royal Stratford East, Resident Assistant Director at The Finborough Theatre, and on the Young Vic's directing programme.

 

His directing work at the Bush Theatre includes Lenny Henry's August in England (co-directed with Lynette Linton), Red Pitch by Tyrell Williams and Temi Wilkey's The High Table (Stage Debut Award winner 2020). I Wonder If (presented with YV Taking Part) ran at the Young Vic in 2022 before going on a community tour, and Daniel was the Creative Associate on the UK Premiere of Bootycandy at Gate Theatre. His work at Birmingham Rep includes Joe Penhall's Blue Orange; Concubine; Stuff; I Knew You Abuelo; Jump! We'll Catch You; Made In India/Britain and Exhale. His previous directing work includes plays with Talawa Theatre Company, Manchester Royal Exchange, New Heritage Theatre, and the New Vic.

 

His film and TV director credits include Dropped (Mothers Best Child), On Belonging (Young Vic), Malachi (S.E.D), Floating on Clouds (Kingdom Entertainment Group) and Y.O.L.O. Therapy (S.E.D).

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